How Far Will Fear Lead You?

Do you remember the story in the Bible where Herod killed all the boys under the age of two? You can read about it in Matthew 2. Herod did this atrocious act out of fear of Jesus taking over his job.

But why did all the soldiers go along? Because of fear also. The fear of being killed. I often wonder whenever I read this story if any soldier had to allow his own son to be murdered. Can you imagine?

We all think that is such an appalling act, but out of fear of being killed, you might do something just as terrible. We all hear stories of crowds attacking others, and those who wouldn’t normally join in do so. Experts call it a mob mentality. I think it has more to do with the fear that the crowd may turn on us than anything else.

We all follow the crowd to some extent. We don’t want to feel ostracized by our friends, family, or churches. It all comes down to fear.

Out of fear of being alone, we hook up with some guy from the internet we don’t really know. We send him money or allow him to move in. Our friends tell us we need to check him out. It doesn’t matter what might be discovered as long as we think he loves us.

We have a fear of not being liked so we don’t step out of our comfort zone. We go along with our friends so they don’t see we disagree with their views on abortion or politics. And we certainly would not disagree with our church friends about their views.

There are those who fear failure, so they don’t try anything new. There’s a fear of ending up poor, so you don’t tithe or give to help others. Fear of flying, so you don’t get on a plane. The list of our fears goes on and on.

It’s at times we are afraid that we need to put our trust in God. Psalm 56:3 says When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. If you give up your fear to God, He will calm you and allow you to do whatever task is before you.

By putting your trust in God, you also show your true faith in the Lord.

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Fear cuts deeper than swords. – George R.R. Martin, Game of Thrones

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Fear can be like a knife to the throat, causing us to do or not do what we should. Fear has caused Christians to remain silent when they see wrong being done. How do you think abortion became illegal in the first place?

As Christians, we need to put our faith in the one true strength, Jesus. You might still have fear, but you won’t act on it. You need to keep fear from controlling you, no matter the circumstances. If not, you’ll always follow instead of lead. And shouldn’t all Christians move and lead in some way?

If you or someone you know are in need of prayer this week, please leave a comment. We’d be more than happy to pray for you. And if this post moved you in some way, please feel free to share it.

As Christians, we hear all the time we should bless others, but with work and money constraints, it’s not always easy. 30 in 30 shows you how to bless others every day for one month. The best part, each blessing is inexpensive and takes very little time. And the more you bless others, the more you’ll feel blessed as well.